Lubricating system



H. E. WARREN.

LUBRIGATING SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1,l920.

Patented Oct. 3, 1922..

Inventor: enrg EIWarren,

Patented Oct. 3, 1922.

umrao STATES. PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY E. WARREN, 0F ASHLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO WARREN CLOCK COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

LUBRICATING SYSTEM.

Application filed September 1, 1920. Serial No. 407,487.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY E. WARREN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ashland, in the county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lubricating System, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a motor drive, and more particularly to a drive comprising means for producing mechanical motion, such as a motor, and transmitting mechanism adapted to modify the character of the motion produced by the motor at the point where the power is to be used.

My invention finds particular application to that class of drives used for transmitting motion to the hands of synchronous motor driven secondary clocks. The main object of my invention is to provide a device of the character indicated, inexpensive to manu facture, and exceedingly compact. Another object is to tprovide a device for modifying the speed 0 the motor and to provide eflicient lubricating means for the various mechanical elements needed in the transmission of motion, so that the frictional losses may be reduced. Other objects and advantages, consisting invarious improvements and modifications pertainin to motor drives will hereinafter be more'fully described and claimed.

The construction and-mode of o eration of my invention may be understood rom the description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a sectional view showing the various elements of both the motor and the transmitting mechanism; and Fig. 2 is an outline side view showing more clearly the relation between the motor and the enclosing case of the drive.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, my invention may be used in conjunctionl with a motor 1, which I show in this case as a s nchronous, self-starting motor described in letters Patent 1,283,432 granted in my name and assigned to the same assignee as the present application. It is of course to be understood that althou h I show my invention in connection witfi this type of motor, it may be used with all sizes or t pes of machinery or motors, such as non-e ectrical motors or I have shown a rotor 5 located in the, space.

between the poles of the field 2 and adapted to be rotated upon energization of the coil 4 as is well understood. By the aid of my invention the speed of this rotor 5 is reduced, and the power is made available at the power shaft (5 which carries in this instance a driving pinion 7. This driving pinion may operate the load for which the apparatus is designed; in this instance the hands of an electrically actuated clock may be driven. In other instances, however, much greater forces may be elliciently transmitted by appropriate design of the transmission.

Between the shaft 31 of rotor 5 and the power shaft G'there are interposed a plurality of gears designated in general by'the numeral '8. These gears modify the speed of the rotor 5, and illustrate but one means for accomplishing this result. All of the gears are totally enclosed in a gear case 9 and its cover- 10. The articular construction of this gearing will be described later on. The gear case 9 has a cylindrical wortion 11 closed at the end by the wall 12. This cylindrical portion totally encloses the rotor 5 shown and is held to the stator; in this case, frictionally held within the inner periphery of the stationary portion of the motor. This method of holding. the entire gear case to the statorof the motor permits the motor 1 to be reversed in relation to the gear case. That is, the side of the motor marked A may be made to take the position .now held by side B, and vice versa. This reversal causes a reversal of the direction of rotation of the rotor, and a reversible drive is obtained.

The cover 10 for the gear case 9 is held in place, b any appropriate means. In this instance provide for this purpose interengaging cylindrical portions 13 and 14 carried respectively by the ear case 9 and the cover 10. These two cylmdrical portions 13 and 14 may be held together simply by friction, by making their engaging surfaces of the proper size. In this way it is possible to slip the cover 10 over the gear case 9 with great facility. The power shaft 6 extends through the cover 10, and in order surfaces of these elements.

that the entire case be oil tight, I provide a packing'28 for this shaft. The packing may be either felt or cork, and is appropriately held in place between the threaded cap 30 and the mouth shaped projection 29 formed on the cover 10. It is to be noted that the axis of shaft 6, while parallel with that of rotor 5, is displaced therefrom. It is thus possible, by an angular adjustment of the entire gear case to compensate for the varying sizes of gears with which pinion 7 may mesh. This angular adjustment is conveniently accomplished in the present instance by rotating part 11 of the case within the inner periphery of the stationary member 2.

The elements making up the gearing 8 will now be described. In order to reduce the friction as much as possible and to provide sufficient lubrication appropriate means are used to supply the oil to the bearing These means provide a capillary space or passageway between an oil well and the engaging sliding surfaces of the bearing and the shaft journaled therein. Oil from the well-is carried, be capillary attraction, to the sliding surfaces. I shall now describe how I provide the capillary space. As shown clearly in Fig. 1, the bearing supports for the various shafts designated by 6, 15, 16, and 17 which serve to support the gears, comprise a pair of metallic members or plates 18, separated by capillary space 19. This separation may be produced in any well known way; in th1s instance by the use of a plurality of small projections 20 punched in one of the two plates 18; appropriate fastening means such as screws 21 are provided for holding the two metallic members 18 together. In the drawing, for the sake of clarity, I have shown members 18 separated much farther than is necessary in actual practice. For keeping the two pairs of metallic members 18 spaced the proper distance apart, I provide appropriate means such as the spacers 22 riveted to the inside plates, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. In one or the other of the two plates 18 there is provided a bearing for each of the shafts used in the transmitting train. The plates 18 dip into the oil 23 which is appropriately held in a portion of the gear case 9, which serves as a well therefor. The level of this oil 23 is considerably below the level of any of the shafts supported in the plates 18 and the oil gets to' these shafts by means of the capillary attraction through the capillary'space 19. It is to be noted also that each of the two plates 18 serves to limit the thrust or sidewise movement of those shafts journaled solely in the other of said pair of plates. The entire structure comprising the bearing plates 18 and reduction gearing 8 is held to the gear'case 9 against a flat annular surface 24 provided thereon by means of appropriate fasteners such as the screws 25. It will be evident that the spaced partitions dip into the lubricant and convey oil to the bearings in any and all positions of the casing to which it may be adjusted about its horizontal axis.

The shaft 17 which carries the gear 26 meshing with the gear 27 serving to drive the power shaft 6 extends through both of the left-hand plates 18, as shown, so that the cover 10 may be removed without the necessity of disturbing the remainder of the mechanism. The power shaft 6 is journaled in the outer of the two left-hand bearing plates 18, as is clearly shown, and its axial movement is prevented in one direction by the inner plate and in the other direction by the inner surface of the gear case cover. The lubrication provided by the means de scribed has been found to be ample.

In the present instance the rotor 5 is held in the field produced by the stator of the motor 1 by magnetic attraction. That is to say, the rotor shaft 31 has a longitudinal axial movement and is held in operative position meshing with the appropriate gear only when the motor is in operation. To provide a good bearing surface for the shaft 31 of the rotor I use a member 32, appropriately held to one of the metallic members or plates 18, such as by riviting, as shown, and having an outer bearing portion 33 accommodating the shaft 31. Con necting the sliding surfaces of the bearing and shaft at the portion 33 is an annular capillary space 3 1 which connects with the capillary space formed between the members 18. This capillary space is obtained by providing an aperture within the member 32 of the proper size, through which the shaft 31 extends. Thus a capillary space extends. from the oil 23, between the two members 18, through capillary space 34, and to the sliding surfaces at the end of member 33. To provide a sufiiciently long bearing for the shaft 31 at its left-hand end I use a bushing 35 fastened to the inner of the two metallic plates 18. By means of this construction the shaft 31 is extremely well supported near each end. When the rotor 5 is in its inoperative position, the shaft 31 may slide to the left and disengage the driving pinion 36 from its gear. 'However, when a current passes through the coil 12 there is a magnetic attraction sufficient to cause the shaft 31 to move to the right, so that the rotor 5 assumes a central position with respect the the field structure 2, and pinion 36 is reengaged with the first of the train of reduction gears 8.

It is thus seen that I provide an extremely inexpensive and compact device for modifying the speed of a rotor shaft, and for properly lubricating the moving parts.

While I have shown in the accompanying illustration but one embodiment of my device, I do not wish to be limited thereto but aim to cover in the appended claims all modifications falling fairly within the scope of my invention.

. What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is,

1. In combination, a pair of metallic members separated by a capillary space, a rotatable shaft 'ournaled in one of said members andextendlng into the capillary space, and a member for containing oil into which the metallic members dip, the oil level being dip, the oil level being'below that ofany of i the journaled shafts.

3. In combination, a pair of metallic members separated by a capillary space, a rotatable shaft journaled in one of said members and extending into the capillary space, the other of said metallic members serving to limit the end play of said shaft, and a member for containing oil into which the metallic members'dip, the oil level being below. that of the journaled shaft.

4. In combination, a plurality of rotatable shafts, two pairs of metallic members each.

pair separated by a capillary space, said rotatable shafts being journaled at each end in one of the two metallic members of each pair, the other members of the pairs serving to limit the end play of said shafts, and a member for containing-oil into which the metallic members di the oil level being below that of any of t e journaled shafts.

bearings by capil 5. In combination, a pair of metallic plates separated by a capillary space,a shaft extending through both of saidplates and journaled in one of said plates, an apertured member carried by the other of said plates, said shaft extending through the aperture, said aperture being slightly larger than the shaft whereby an annular capillary space is formed between said apertured member and the shaft which annular space connects with the capillary space between the plates, a bearing for said shaft carried by the apertured member,and a member for containing oil into which the pair of metallic plates dip, the oil level being below that of the journaled shaft.

6. In combination a rotatable shaft having a plurality of bearings, a supporting framework for said bearings, a cap1llarypassage way between said bearings adjacent said shaft, an oil well below the level of said bearings into which said framework extends to form a second capillary passageway between said first mentioned passageway and oil well, whereby ary action. a

7. An oil-tight ear casing adapted to be angularl adjusted about its horizontal axis,

oil is conveyed to said l a plurality of horizontally disposed shafts J in said casing, a'plurality of vertically dis;

posed partitions inv said gear case for rotatably supporting said shafts, a lubricant in the bottom ofsaid casing into which said partitions-extend, adjacent pairs of said partitions being placed close together wherer by a capillary passageway is formed between them through which lubricant is conveyed to the shafts irrespective ofthe angular position of said gear casing.

In witness whereof, I have my hand this 24th day of August,,1920.

'HENRY E. WARREN.

hereunto set 

